Provogue mulls malls in towns

Prozone, mall development and management arm of Provogue, will have 14 properties by the end of 2008. Of these, two units in Gujarat will start operations by end of this year.

Nikhil Chaturvedi, managing director, Provogue, said the first mall in Rajkot would be launched this week while the Surat unit would become operational by December.

Both these malls will be called Iscon-Prozone as they are jointly developed with JP Infrastructure, the construction arm of Iscon Group.

Chaturvedi said all the malls would have separate SPVs with land owners to develop malls in smaller towns in India.

"Only 15 per cent of the 30 crore consumers live in the six metros, but you have 70 per cent of the organised retail being concentrated in these cities," pointed out Chaturvedi, explaining the rationale behind targetting smaller cities like Aurangabad and Mysore.

Along these lines, the company had earlier signed a joint venture agreement with Omaxe to develop 10 malls.

He said the company would focus on building malls above 6,00,000 square feet. The company had tied up with international firms like Clancey Global and Zachary Designs, which focus on mall design and management.

Chaturvedi also ruled out any tie up with retailers and multiplex owners. "We like to provide maximum choice to consumers," said Chaturvedi. As a result, if Adlabs is operating its multiplex in Prozone malls, it could have a 'fun republic' in any other place.

The long-term plan is to have 50 properties in the next five years, Chaturvedisaid.